THE NEW YORKER The public's interest in Victor was not just morbid. Modern children who are abused or neglected draw our at- tention because we see them, usually, as disturbing exceptions, albeit symp- tomatic ones, to society's prevailing order. In France in 1800, order was not presumed; the Committee of Public Safety and the Reign of Terror had taken care of that. Even in the prevail- ing order of earlier, calmer eras, chil- dren did not enjoy their current cosseted status. The Enlightenment's emphasis on the worth of the individual had been extended to individual children, but in a grudging sort of way, and the expedience of leaving them-at least, the unwanted ones-to die in the woods was not unheard of and not altogether shocking. The boy found naked in the tanner's doorway was interesting to his country's citizens not because his brutal history astonished them but because the Enlightenment and the Terror had honed an appreciation of certain ques- tions that the boy might be able to address-questions about the nature of man. Strange as it seems in an age in which philosophy is a thing apart from pop culture, the betting sheets in the journaux of Paris were a street refer- endum on the ideas of Montaigne, Rousseau, Descartes, Condillac, and Locke. Whatever its more general effects, the Revolution seemed to have worked to Victor's advantage. Foremost among its courtesies was its timely end, which permitted a renewal of interest in things scientific. During the preceding de- cade, Paris had not been a happy place for scientists, among others. Intellec- tual independence had been considered almost as subversive as priestly piety. The Society of Observers of Man, the anthropological organization that initiated the research on Victor, was only a month old when he was discov- ered. Ten years earlier, the Revolu- tionary government had sanctioned the institute where he was to live, adding "N ational" to its name and supporting it from state coffers. The deaf had been considered subhuman, befor the school's successful efforts to teach them sign language, and had been locked away in the purgatory of the Bicêtre asylum, with criminals, epileptics, and the insane. For the government, the new ability of deaf people to commu- nicate was a symbolic resurrection, a metaphorical promise to the voiceless of all kinds. The government had also 71 (A dvertlsement) c:::::> <:::J C) "- - Ì'\ - - 2/flJ , - 111' " , .. 8 N I., . - , fá ïJ; 1 "Room #21007-A." MAY WE SUGGEST THE TREMONT. CHICAGO S BEST SMALL HOTEL. EUROPEAN INTIMACY JUST OFF THE MAGNIFICENT MILE. 800 621 8133 THI TRIMONT HOTIL r----------------------------, OVNG? I ATTACH YOUR MAGAZINE LABEL HERE (Or write in current address) Please give us 4 weeks' notice. D I'm moving to the new address indicated below. Name (please print) Address Apartment I I City State ZIP D I'd like to renew my subscription for one year at $32. D I'd like to subscribe for one year (52 issues) at $32. D My check for $ is enclosed. Charge my D American Express D MasterCard [ ] Visa / Account Number Expiration Date Signature Canada 1 year $65.27 (includes GST); other foreign 1 year $66.00. Payment in U.S. funds with order. D Remove my name from THE NEW YORKER subscriber hsts available for rental. 4152 MAIL COMPLETED ORDER TO: THE NEW YORKER L ___ B!.C P.l! M!N.l:. . ,!O L 3 _ _ _.J